Albany State University vs Emory University

Metric	Albany State University	Emory University
Undergraduate enrollment	5,956	7,298
Acceptance rate Lower means more selective	—	10.7%
Average SAT	—	1,520
Median ACT	—	33
In-state tuition	$5,656	$64,280
Out-of-state tuition	$17,008	$64,280
Average net price What students actually pay after aid	$11,898	$22,585
Median debt at graduation	$25,024	$18,250
Graduation rate	31.1%	91.1%
First-year retention	78.6%	95.7%
Median salary (10 yr)	$40,674	$80,137

Metric

Albany State University

Emory University

Undergraduate enrollment

5,956

7,298

Acceptance rate
Lower means more selective

—

10.7%

Average SAT

—

1,520

Median ACT

—

In-state tuition

$5,656

$64,280

Out-of-state tuition

$17,008

$64,280

Average net price
What students actually pay after aid

$11,898

$22,585

Median debt at graduation

$25,024

$18,250

Graduation rate

31.1%

91.1%

First-year retention

78.6%

95.7%

Median salary (10 yr)

$40,674

$80,137

What the numbers say

Albany State University costs less after aid — $11,898 a year versus $22,585, a difference of $10,687 annually, or roughly $42,748 across four years.
Emory University graduates report higher median earnings — $80,137 against $40,674 ten years after entry.
Emory University graduates a larger share of its students — 91.1% versus 31.1%.
On pure return — salary divided by net price — Emory University comes out ahead at 3.5× versus 3.4×.

Comparison tables are a starting point, not a decision. Three things matter more than anything in the table above:

Your real aid offer. Net price is an average across all income levels. Two students at the same school can pay amounts that differ by tens of thousands. Wait for actual award letters before ruling anything out on cost.
Your intended major. Earnings vary more between majors at one school than between schools for one major. A computer science graduate from the "lower earning" school here will likely out-earn a general studies graduate from the other.
Whether you will finish. Graduation rate is the metric most predictive of whether the money spent turns into a credential. Campus fit, support services, and commute all feed into it more than prestige does.

Visit before you commit

Both Albany State University and Emory University run campus visits. Spending an afternoon on each will tell you things no dataset can.